An Education

I got to go back to the theaters last night and I am reminded of how lucky I am to have a wife that would rather see a film like An Education than the juggernaut of all RomComs Valentines Day. Thanks to the Academy Awards desperation to gain more viewers by expanding the nominees for best picture from 5 to 10 I was given a reason to take interest in this British Dramedy.
The film takes place in England in 1961 and centers around Jenny, a 16 year old going to an all girls schools whose parents want her to study hard so that she can attend Oxford after private school. That is of course until an older man comes by and Jenny's life takes a turn. The older man is David and he is an unscrupulous individual whose is able to charm Jenny's parents into allowing her to join in him on one seemingly unlikely adventure after another. We see Jenny enjoying her life and having fun like never before. Oxford is no longer her goal as she begins to see such pursuits as being closer to death than life sense they interfere with eating in fancy restaurants, listening to wonderful music and traveling all over. Everything is great until ...
No need for spoilers here. The film is filled with wonderful performances and an even mix of sharp humor and compelling drama. What drew me to the film first though was knowing that the screenplay was written by Nick Hornby. Hornby's work was the base for High Fidelity and About a Boy which are two of my favorite films. Like About a Boy, An Education skillfully creates a world in which the viewer can actually see themselves wanting a life like the lead character's while knowing that their is something inherently shallow in that life. And like any skilled story teller, Hornby is able to pull the rug out from under his characters in a way that makes us understand why it was necessary to do so.
I don't know if this film gets nominated for an Academy Award if there are only 5 slots, but I can say that it is worthy of the acknowledgement.